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How Becoming An Accidental Rule Follower Resulted In Higher Productivity

Founder and VP of Operations at CraftJack, Inc., overseeing business growth and community culture.

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It's everywhere, and I mean everywhere. For years, almost every book, article, interview, video and tweet about innovative, successful leaders has mentioned this one habit — waking up early — that many of them share, so it must be necessary in order to lead a life and career of high productivity, right? It used to make me wonder: How can I possibly accomplish all of my goals if I don’t follow this "rule"?

Although I was led to believe that most impressive people begin their day sometime between 4 and 5 a.m. — for exercise, reading, meditation, catching up and preparing for the day ahead — I decided long ago that it wasn’t for me. Who wants to wake up earlier than necessary when option B is to sleep longer? After all, isn’t sleep also an important factor for a healthy and productive day? For all the advocates of early rising, there are others who have tried it and found it counterproductive.

I myself was neither a night owl nor a morning lark — I needed the hours of sleep on both ends of the cycle. What I realized years later came as a shock of hindsight.

Reality set in for me around age 31, after acknowledging to myself that I'd been replacing a once long-standing consistent wardrobe with increasingly wider pants and that my metabolism was no longer keeping up with my strict donut and pizza diet. Something had to give. Given my unwillingness to deviate from my sacred dietary tradition, exercise was in order, and I decided, for the first time in my life, to start running.

Within a year, I had completed several short distance races, found that I had more daily energy and in the process even managed to shed several pounds, bringing me back down to my healthy comfort zone. Plus, I was feeling so good due to the endorphins from exercise that I decided to keep running.

While training for my first marathon in 2016, I found that in order to get my miles in and be back home in time to shuttle my kids to school, I needed to wake up earlier and earlier. On my longest training days, my alarm was waking me at 3 a.m. But what I suddenly realized then and continue to observe as I get up early today is how productive I am before even getting to the office in the morning.

On most days, I respond to email, squeeze in a 20-minute meditation session, complete a satisfying workout, listen to an audiobook or podcast and mentally prepare myself for the day ahead — all before 7 a.m. And the benefits continue to pay dividends throughout my day. Because I get the ball rolling on email conversations early in the morning, progress is often already happening when I arrive at the office. The meditationand runs help fuel my brain and body, while the audiobooks and podcasts inspire new work models and concepts as they relate to products, service and leadership.

While I didn’t set out to mimic the early morning rituals of other successful entrepreneurs, I found my way into that lifestyle as a byproduct of wanting slimmer pants. And it’s paying off. Despite waking up most mornings at 4 a.m., I'm well-rested, focused, disciplined, embracing of a growth mindset and highly productive.

If you think getting up early isn't for you, I urge you to try it yourself for two weeks. Just two weeks. That's all. At worst, you'll spend a few extra hours out of bed and may never really miss that time. At best, you may unlock an entirely new perspective on life with endless possibilities and find that your mind and body perform at higher levels than ever before.

Here are my tips for getting started as an early riser:

1. Never Snooze

The snooze button should never be an option. Put your alarm clock or phone on the other side of the room if you must, but don't get in the habit of hitting snooze. It’ll likely only make getting up more difficult, your body will learn to ignore the call to action and it’ll mean you’re either already late or having to set your alarm too early, making you lose precious sleep.

2. Define Your Objectives And Key Results (OKRs)

Setting OKRs is a must if you want to track your success and see how your life is improving. This can be as simple as deciding how many books you hope to read each week, being consistent with your meditation or journaling or showing up to the gym every day you say you will. Decide what you expect to get out of your new morning routine so that your goals remain clear and in focus.

3. Build Up Momentum

Accomplishing every one of your morning tasks should be a gradual process, not a zero-sum game. Taking on several new behavioral changes at once can be overwhelming and a recipe for failure. Start with waking up early and taking a walk or run. Slowly add more to your morning routine as your body and mind begin to adjust.